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1979 Pittsburgh Panthers football
PittPanthers
Eastern Champions
Fiesta Bowl Champions
Fiesta Bowl, Win, 16-10, Arizona Wildcats
Conference Independent
Ranking
Coaches #6
AP #7
1979 record 11–1
Head coach Jackie Sherrill (3rd year)
Offensive coordinator Wally English (1st year)
Offensive scheme Multiple Pro
Defensive coordinator Foge Fazio (1st year)
Base defense Multiple Front
Home stadium Pitt Stadium
(Capacity: 56,500)
Seasons
« 1978 1980 »
1979 Division I-A independents football records
v · d · e Conf     Overall
Team W   L   T     W   L   T
No. 6 Florida State           11 1 0
No. 7 Pittsburgh           11 1 0
UNLV           9 1 2
No. 17 Temple           10 2 0
Tulane           9 3 0
Rutgers           8 3 0
East Carolina           7 3 1
No. 20 Penn State           8 4 0
South Carolina           8 4 0
Navy           7 4 0
Notre Dame           7 4 0
Southern Miss           6 4 1
Syracuse           7 5 0
Colgate           5 4 1
Boston College           5 6 0
Holy Cross           5 6 0
Memphis           5 6 0
Miami           5 6 0
North Texas State           5 6 0
Villanova           5 6 0
Virginia Tech           5 6 0
West Virginia           5 6 0
Georgia Tech           4 6 1
Louisville           4 6 1
Connecticut           3 6 2
William & Mary           4 7 0
Illinois State           3 8 0
Northeast Louisiana           3 8 0
Army           2 8 1
Air Force           2 9 0
Cincinnati           2 9 0
Richmond           0 11 0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1979 Pittsburgh Panthers football team represented the University of Pittsburgh in the 1979 college football season. The Panthers competed in the 1980 Fiesta Bowl. Pitt was awarded the Lambert-Meadowlands Trophy as the champion of the East.

Schedule[]

In the Backyard Brawl, Pittsburgh was led by freshman quarterback Dan Marino. He directed Pitt to a 24-17 victory in the last college football game played at old Mountaineer Field.[1]

Date Time Opponent# Rank# Site TV Result Attendance
Sat. Sep. 15 1:30 p.m. Kansas #16 Pitt StadiumPittsburgh, PA W 24–0   41,545
Sat. Sep. 22 1:00 p.m. at North Carolina #13 Kenan Memorial StadiumChapel Hill, NC L 7–17   50,500
Sat. Sep. 29 7:30 p.m. at Temple Veterans StadiumPhiladelphia, PA W 10–9   34,039
Sat. Oct. 6 1:30 p.m. Boston College Pitt Stadium • Pittsburgh, PA W 28–7   37,146
Sat. Oct. 13† 10:00 a.m. Cincinnati Pitt Stadium • Pittsburgh, PA W 35–0   31,620
Sat. Oct. 20 4:30 p.m. at #12 Washington #17 Husky StadiumSeattle, WA ABC W 26–14   52,485
Sat. Oct. 27 1:30 p.m. #17 Navy #12 Pitt Stadium • Pittsburgh, PA W 24–7   51,332
Sat. Nov. 3 12:30 p.m. Syracuse #12 Pitt Stadium • Pittsburgh, PA ABC W 28–21   43,500
Sat. Nov. 10 1:30 p.m. at West Virginia #12 Mountaineer FieldMorgantown, WV (Backyard Brawl) W 24–17   38,681
Sat. Nov. 17 1:30 p.m. at Army #11 Michie StadiumWest Point, NY W 40–0   31,689
Sat. Dec. 1 12:30 p.m. at #20 Penn State #11 Beaver StadiumUniversity Park, PA ABC W 29–14   76,958
Tue. Dec. 25 3:30 p.m. vs. Arizona #10 Sun Devil StadiumTempe, AZ (Fiesta Bowl) NBC W 16–10   55,347
*Non-Conference Game. Homecoming. #Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

[2]

Coaching staff[]

1979 Pittsburgh Panthers football staff
Coaching Staff   Support Staff
  • Alex Kramer – Executive Assistant
  • Kevin Dickey – Recruiting Coordinator
  • Nick Gasparato – Graduate Assistant
  • Jerry Leith – Graduate Assistant
  • Nick Rapone – Graduate Assistant
  Strength and Conditioning Staff
  • Paul Stark – Weight, Strength Coach

[3]

Team players drafted into in the NFL[]

Player Position Round Pick NFL Club
Jo Jo Heath Defensive Back 6 141 Cincinnati Bengals
Bob Gruber Tackle 10 276 Los Angeles Rams

[4]

References[]

MarinoColorPitt1979

Dan Marino quarterbacks Pitt in 35-0 rout of Cincinnati on October 13, 1979

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